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The NFL has doubled down on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) commitments while other employers have rolled back programs and policies, a USA Today report has confirmed.
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, speaking at a recent league meeting in Nashville, stated that while he can’t speak for other companies, DEI programs are very valuable to the league.
“I can only speak for the NFL. Diversity has made us better,” he stated.
The NFL has long been a champion of DEI, first adopting the “Rooney Rule” in 2003 following a recommendation from its Workplace Diversity Committee, today known as the DEI Committee.
The Rooney Rule originally required every team recruiting a head coach to interview at least one or more diverse candidates but has since expanded, with NFL teams now required to interview at least two minority candidates when recruiting for a head coach, a general manager, or a coordinator—and one minority candidate for a quarterback coach vacancy.
Cyrus Mehri, an attorney who helped create the Rooney Rule in 2003, told USA Today Sports that despite recent media criticism over DEI, the league is proud of its commitment to DEI.
“The anti-DEI backlash has caused some companies to pause and others to double down on their DEI journey,” he stated. “The companies that stay on track will have a competitive advantage… The NFL is one of the companies that is steadfast and doubling down on its commitment to equal opportunity.”
The NFL doubles down on DEI despite backdrop of legal challenges
Following the US Supreme Court’s ban on the use of affirmative action policies in college admissions in June 2023, other businesses have reflected on what precedent this sets for their own DEI policies.
There have been numerous cases of anti-DEI groups filing lawsuits against companies for their policies relating to diversity and inclusion. Florida’s attorney governor, for example, recently declared the state would investigate Starbucks for its DEI practices.
The NFL is no different. It is currently facing two lawsuits, one class-action filing from a defensive coordinator at the Minnesota Vikings, and another by an ex-NFL Network reporter who accuses the league of retaliation.
America First Legal, a group that has lodged several other complaints with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), has demanded an investigation into “reverse discrimination,” but the NFL says there is no pending action.
“America First showed up empty-handed with no victims and no statistical evidence,” Mehri stated. No white coach has made an allegation of reverse discrimination.
Despite the tensions, the NFL is doubling down on its DEI practices. In recent years it has expanded the rule to include women as well as minority candidates, and launched further initiatives like the Accelerator Program – “a platform for clubs and owners to engage with qualified coaching candidates from diverse backgrounds” – and NFL Source, and expansion to its supplier procurement in which the league “will look to increase partnerships with certified and underrepresented businesses that are 51% owned and operated or led by a veteran, woman, minority, person with disabilities or LGBTQ+.”
League-operated events including the Super Bowl will need to meet targets under the new program, though one NFL team owner and another club president told USA Today Sports they weren’t certain what the program meant for them, as their teams already had targets in place.
NFL Commissioner: DEI has “made us better because we have more talented people”
NFL leaders are confident that DEI policies such as the Rooney Rule are hugely beneficial to the organization.
“Requirements to the Rooney Rule, as an example, are to consider a diverse slate of candidates," Goodell told USA Today Sports. "It’s not a decision-making process. You hire the best people. I think that’s made us better because we have more talented people when you see that diverse slate of candidates.”
Jonathan Beane, Chief Diversity Officer at the NFL, adds that DEI also helps the company achieve its strategic goals. “We just fundamentally believe that DEI is good business,” Beane said. “Look at what we want to achieve. We want to grow our fan base, we want to grow globally. You look at the younger population. Extremely diverse. We have to be committed to diversity and inclusion in order to connect with that.”
The NFL has a record nine head coaches of color and eight general managers of color, but for the forthcoming season, there will be no non-white co-ordinators.
“We’re trying to stay true to our North Star and make the NFL a reflection of our fans, bringing in the best and most-talented people and vendors that we can,” said Dasha Smith, an NFL executive vice president and chief administrative officer, speaking to USA TODAY Sports.
Smith says while others have changed their course on DEI, the NFL has no intention to do so. “I know that a number of organizations have pivoted a bit,” she stated. “We’ve made the intentional decision not to do that, to focus on just that a lot of our policies are about equal access to opportunity. It’s not losing that distinction. There’s going to be that noise and you can let it distract you, but we’re not going to do that.”
